09

Sep 2018

Autism and Another Fund Raising Event
I like to keep active on the fund raising front. I try to volunteer two or three times a year.
One event I volunteer for every year is The Ed Asner Poker Tournament.
Ed Asner is a huge supporter of the autism community.
Additionally, he just began a non-profit called The Ed Asner Family Center. Their inaugural event was a summer camp for children on the spectrum.
What is it like to volunteer for a fund raising event?
It’s typically working behind-the-scenes.
You arrive early. Sometimes, you … [Read more...]

11

Mar 2018

Autism and Sheldon Cooper
Why do I have Sheldon Cooper on the brain?
Sheldon Cooper is one of the main characters on the TV show The Big Bang Theory.
I guess there are several reasons why I’ve had Sheldon Cooper on my brain lately.
First, the regular season (Season 11) of Big Bang is back and I’ve watched two new episodes.
Second, the recent discovery that my son is being bullied in one of classes.
Third, I watched a few episodes of The Big Bang Theory spinoff called Young Sheldon.
Fourth, I took my son to a train museum this past … [Read more...]

01

Oct 2017

Autism and Volunteering
My son officially started high school this past summer. I’m sure I’ll be writing more about him in high school, but for now I’ll discuss his first ever high school class—the summer health class.
What’s the summer health class?
In our school district, it’s common practice for incoming freshman high school students to take the required health class over the summer. Not all students do it, of course, but the majority do. By taking it early, it frees up an elective for ninth grade.
As the reason for our son to take the … [Read more...]

13

Sep 2014

Volunteering with one autism organization
What about volunteering for autism organizations? How many do I volunteer with?
I didnʼt volunteer at all when my son was first diagnosed. For two years, I focused on him, learning about autism and what he needs were in terms of services. I wanted him “fixed“ and relatively quickly.
Instead, I had to learn about this term, “autism,“ why it applied to my son, and what I was really supposed to do. I had to slow down, help him, and learn.
After two years, I finally began to feel comfortable enough to … [Read more...]

18

Aug 2014

What about volunteering for autism organizations? How many do I volunteer with?
I didnʼt volunteer at all when my son was first diagnosed. For two years, I focused on him, learning about autism and what he needs were in terms of services. I wanted him “fixed“ and relatively quickly. Instead, I had to learn about this term, “autism,“ why it applied to my son, and what I was really supposed to do. I had to slow down, help him, and learn.
After two years, I finally began to feel comfortable enough to go out into the world and talk about my son … [Read more...]

29

Aug 2011

Bringing a child to autism-related meetings
I am a committee member for the Los Angeles Walk Now for Autism Speaks. For many walks, I have been the chairperson in charge of the 300 or so volunteers for this very large yearly event.
The LA Walk happens each year typically in April. The committee begins meeting around December. We meet once a month until April, where we meet twice.
At first, this volunteer position was something I did by myself. My husband wasn't involved and he would taken care of our child when I was at the meetings.
Then, … [Read more...]